I was in high school when this show started. I didn't get into it right away, but caught on after a year or so. I was familiar with Howard Hesseman from WKRP in Cincinatti as Dr. Johnny Fever, the spaced out DJ. He was very different here. What I liked about the show was the fact that these kids were smart kids and the opposite of Welcome Back, Kotter, which had class clowns. These kids had brains, as I did, and like me, weren't very social. Mr. Moore tried to not only teach them history, but also tried to help them with their social skills and problems. He was like a dad to them and I think they learned a lot from him. And the show would revolve around the students. You'd have an episode about Arvid, like with his dad and the opportunity to lose his virginity, Maria dating someone she doesn't want to reveal her brain too, etc. This was a problem when Billy Connolly took over in season 5. He was more a stand-up comic, as noted in the first episode. Some of his stuff seems more like a stage performance. Maybe that was why the series only lasted one more year. Too bad when the kids graduated they couldn't have Hesseman come back for a cameo and have him say, "Well, I knew you were graduating this year and I didn't want to miss it." And I had no problem with the new students who took over. In a way, Viki was the beauty like Maria was. I wish they'd air this show again. I have a few episodes on tape but I would love to see more of them.
